Scottish Executive

Employment

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to provide alternative employment opportunities in Lanarkshire, particularly in the event of any further closures of steelworks.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The Scottish Executive and its agencies support job creation and training for new employment through a variety of programmes. In the event of significant redundancies, a team of local agencies is quickly brought together under the Executive’s Partnership Action for Continuing Employment framework to support all those affected find new work. I was pleased to note that in the recent restructuring announcement by Corus there were no plans to close or make significant job cuts at the company’s steel works in Lanarkshire.

Enterprise

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has received regarding any skill shortages which could damage prospects for inward investment.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The Executive has received a representation from Electronics Scotland about issues in the electronics sector with regard to recruiting skilled staff. The Executive is working with industry groups and with further and higher education to help stimulate skills growth. Locate in Scotland continues to receive feedback from inward investors who feel that availability of skills is one of Scotland’s greatest attributes. We expect this is an issue that Future Skills Scotland will want to address in due course.

European Convention on Human Rights

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-6799 by Sarah Boyack on 30 May 2000, whether it has completed reviewing the compliance of Scottish planning law and organisation with the European Convention on Human Rights and, if so, whether any legislation now requires to be amended, in particular in relation to appeals and investigations, and what the timescale is for any changes to be implemented.

Mr Sam Galbraith: The Executive undertook a review of existing planning legislation and concluded that the current planning system, with its inbuilt checks and safeguards, is compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) without further amendment.

  However, we keep under review the need to amend existing law and procedures to comply with the Convention and shall continue to do so, particularly in consequence of any relevant developments in ECHR and domestic case law.

Hepatitis

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will set up a dedicated hepatitis C telephone helpline.

Malcolm Chisholm: The UK Health Departments fund the National AIDS and Drugs Helplines, which already provide callers with information on hepatitis C where this is sought. The Executive proposes to review, with other UK Health Departments, whether there is a need to put a greater emphasis on hepatitis C in the services provided by these helplines.

  Information about hepatitis C is also provided by the NHS Helpline in Scotland and by services provided by voluntary organisations involved in hepatitis C issues, such as Mainliners.

Higher Education

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council’s distribution of funding, broken down by university, is for 2001-02 and was for the previous two financial years.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The allocation of funding to individual institutions is a matter for the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council (SHEFC). The council makes its allocation on the basis of academic years. The allocation for the 2001-02 academic year has not yet been published. Information for previous years is available on the SHEFC website or from the Parliament’s Reference Centre.

Higher Education

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average spend per student was last year, broken down by university, using the current Scottish Higher Education Funding Council distribution system and what that figure would be using the proposed system for distribution.

Ms Wendy Alexander: This information is not available centrally.

Land Reform Bill

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there have been any alterations to its timetable for the proposed Land Reform Bill and whether it will set out its current timetable for the Bill from consultation to introduction through to Royal Assent.

Mr Jim Wallace: As detailed in the latest Land Reform Action Plan Progress Report, issued on 7 December 2001 and copied to all MSPs and to the Parliament’s Reference Centre (question S1W-11799 refers), the draft Land Reform Bill will issue for consultation later this month. Following the 12-week consultation period, the target date for introduction to Parliament is September 2001. Thereafter, the Bill’s timetable will be a matter for the Parliament.

Marine Environment

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what action the Scottish Environment Protection Agency has taken with regard to the firing of depleted uranium shells into the Solway Firth near Dundrennan in Kirkcudbrightshire.

Mr Sam Galbraith: In 1999 Scottish Environment Protection Agency staff visited the Dundrennan Range and subsequently held discussions with the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency about the environmental monitoring programme there.

NHS Pay

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether £9,726 is an adequate starting salary to recruit honours graduates to work in NHS laboratories.

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to address the pay levels of NHS laboratory staff.

Susan Deacon: In agreeing pay for 2000-01, the Scottish Executive targeted increases of 7.1% for newly qualified MLSOs and up to 26% for MLSO trainees. For 2001-02 a pay offer has recently been made for all NHS non-Pay Review Body staff of 3.7% or £380, whichever is the greater. In addition to this, further adjustments have been proposed to the MLSO pay scales. The combined effect would increase the starting salary for a newly qualified MLSO to over £15,200, a total increase of up to 16.7%. Corresponding increases would see trainees able to earn over £12,500 (an increase of up to 16.2%) and experienced MLSO 1 and MLSO 2 staff over £18,500 and £24,400 respectively, an increase of up to 7.9%.

Occupational Therapy

Maureen Macmillan (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many course places were available to train occupational therapists in each of the last five years and how many will be available in 2001-02.

Ms Wendy Alexander: This information is not held centrally. The allocation of places to particular courses or institutions is a matter for the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council (SHEFC) taking into account advice on workforce needs identified. The detailed allocation for 2001-02 academic year will be announced by SHEFC in March.

Parliamentary Questions

Ms Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will answer questions S1W-12125 and S1W-12126 lodged on 19 December 2000.

Susan Deacon: An answer was given to question S1W-12125 on 31 January and question S1W-12126 was answered today.

Population

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive why Scotland’s population is declining and whether this represents any net "brain drain" in the business, commerce, industrial, educational and research sectors.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The Registrar General’s 1999 mid-year estimate of Scotland’s population was 5,119,200. This represents a fall of 17,400 since 1995, reflecting estimated net out-migration and other adjustments of 10,895 and a natural decrease (more deaths than births) of 6,505. However, the fall in population between 1998 and 1999 is estimated to have been only 800, reflecting estimated net in-migration and other adjustments of 2,917 offset by a natural decrease of 3,717. Particular caution should be attached to the estimates for a single year’s change.

  The General Register Office for Scotland estimates that Scotland will experience a net loss of 1,000 people per annum between now and 2020, the majority of which will be young highly-skilled people. The Executive takes this issue seriously and both the newly formed Scottish Labour Market Intelligence Unit, now called "Future Skills Scotland", and the Enterprise Networks plan to look into this matter over the coming year.

  The Executive does not maintain specific statistical information about the movement of persons working within the fields of business, commerce, industry, academia or research.

Roads

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many representations it has received, and from whom, with regard to the award of trunk road maintenance contracts.

Sarah Boyack: The department has received a number of representations from a wide range of respondents including bidding consortia, local councils and COSLA, trade unions and council workers.

Roads

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what amount of Trans-European Network funding it estimates it will receive for its planned improvements to the A75.

Sarah Boyack: The Route Action Plan (RAP) for the A75 identifies a 10-year investment programme. The first two improvement schemes at Cairntop and Chapleton are at an early stage of planning. We will consider whether it might be appropriate to apply for Trans-European Network (TENs) funding for these and other schemes in the RAP.

Sexual Health

Ms Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to encourage other health boards to follow the lead of Borders Health Board in its setting up of a new Genito-Urinary Medicine service in the area.

Susan Deacon: It is for each health board to assess the health and health care needs for its population, taking into account the nature of existing services; there are no specific plans to encourage other health boards to follow the Borders example. The Executive proposes, however, to produce in the course of this year a national sexual health strategy, which will provide a framework within which health boards and other interests can develop their sexual health services. More generally, the Executive is providing £3 million over three years for the Healthy Respect national health demonstration project to develop and share best practice in the promotion of sexual health, prevention of unwanted teenage pregnancies and reduction of sexually transmitted diseases. The Executive also expects the NHS at local level to work in partnership with local authorities and voluntary sector organisations to ensure that young people have access to appropriate sexual health support and services.

Social Inclusion

Mike Watson (Glasgow Cathcart) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects to make an announcement on the future funding of the New Life for Urban Scotland partnerships in Castlemilk.

Ms Margaret Curran: When these partnerships reached the end of their 10-year life in 1998-99, continuation arrangements were put in place with special funding from the Executive for three years through to March 2002. We have concluded that after that date the Glasgow Alliance and the Capital City Partnership should be asked to take over responsibility for carrying forward the regeneration of Castlemilk and Wester Hailes. They will be asked to do this from additional resources which are being provided to support their strategies for delivering the social justice milestones and targets.

  In each of the two years 2002-03 and 2003-04 we shall be making available £2.712 million to the Glasgow Alliance and £2.118 million to the Capital City Partnership. They will be expected to spend at least 80% of this budget in the first year, and at least 60% in the second year, in Castlemilk and Wester Hailes; decisions about the use of these resources will be taken in consultation with the local community.

  For 2001-02 – the last year in the current three-year period – Castlemilk will receive £2.26 million, including £100,000 for support costs, and Wester Hailes £1.765 million, including £50,000 for support costs and £50,000 for environmental work. We shall also be allocating an additional £200,000 each to the Glasgow Alliance and the Capital City Partnership in 2001-02 to support their work in delivering the social justice milestones and targets.

  The new arrangements from 1 April 2002, supported by additional resources from the Executive, will enable the achievements of the partnerships in Castlemilk and Wester Hailes to be consolidated and sustained, within a framework which recognises the need to integrate this work with the city-wide strategies for the delivery of the social justice milestones and targets which have been developed and are being delivered by the Glasgow Alliance and the Capital City Partnership.